At noon the sun awakens as rural Dalton highway is painted on the arctic, Alaskan horizon. Silhouetted against the burning haze, a haunted asylum pierces the never-ending sky.
A woman screams.
A silken voice and a powerful grip to the throat persuades her silence. His classic Russian features, not unlike the minted image of Czar Nicolas II, remain frozen in time. “Please do not disappoint me like the others, my darling.”
The doorbell chimes. He releases his hold and caresses her cheek. “Natasha,” escapes his lips as he ascends the creaky wooden stairs. A calm hand opens the door. The glistening snow on the front porch pales against Aleksei’s skin and charming smile.
The callused hand of detective Danny Fitzpatrick flashes a search warrant. His puffy, bloodshot eyes lock onto Aleksei’s ...
The young woman cries out, but only Aleksei hears. They will never find you my dear. This beaten and hung over man does not have a clue.
Hours later, the detective crosses the threshold and shudders as if encased in a block of ice. The sun drops to sleep and an eerie shadow creeps alongside him. He shakes his head.
Aleksei watches from the peephole. You feel my immortal essence ... do you not? A forceful hand bolts the door. Aleksei probes his elongating eye teeth.
"This isn't usually a genre I'm drawn to, but Julie pulled me into the story quickly and I didn't want to stop reading. And she has created two characters that have tremendous appeal - our hero, Danny Fitzpatrick, and our villain, Aleksei Nechayev."- Melissa Goodwin, author of The Christmas Village
"This is a great, super fast read. I couldn't put this down. The main character, Danny Fitzpatrick is just the right blend of damaged and vulnerability with a good, healthy dose of skepticism." - Lisa Regan, author of Finding Claire Fletcher and Aberration
"I looked forward to reading Polar Night every day. I kept turning the pages for more. I hope Ms. Flanders keeps writing. I'll definitely keep reading." - M. Pax, author of The Backworlds Series
"This was a refreshing change to other books in this genre that I have read. No spoilers here, but it starts as a crime thriller in the frozen north of Alaska, and quickly develops into a more supernatural mystery... This is a real page-turner. The way the book switched back and forth between the villain, the victim(s) and the heroic cop, kept me always wanting to turn the next page, to read one more chapter, then one more. It takes a riveting plot to get me to do that." - Graeme Ing, author of Ocean of Dust